‘Once in a blue moon’ aptly describes Varun Badola’s rare outings on the small screen. On Monday evening, Badola attended the press event to launch Maan Rahe Tera Pitaah on Sony. Badola was dressed not in smart formals but his screen wear of a simple cotton shirt and trousers. His hair was a dull grey and black with his stubble matching too. Badola plays Kali Prasad, protagonist Anmol’s chachaji. He is more like a messiah to the Brahmapur village in Chattisgarh.

We caught a few minutes with the reticent, reclusive actor and the first time new father. Congratulations! “Thank you.” So what have you named your boy and who does he look like? “Of course he has gone on me. There are no two ways about it and we have named him Devagya.” Ask him where he’s been and he rolls his eyes saying, “You know how I function. I do a serial for six months and then disappear for two years though mind you, I don’t like it. It’s just that not many roles come by.” So what made him agree to do this? “My financial condition and my newborn son! With a new addition in the family, had to work, no?” Is he joking? “Absolutely not. I am being very honest and practical.

Yes, I need to work for the money.” But why this show and not some other considering he must have been approached by others too? “No, no other shows were being offered to me. I am serious and honest again. The producers of Pitaah came to me with this character, I liked it so am doing it.”

He asks us what we thought of the first episode and we shake our head. We complain about it being a bit dramatic and loud. It irks him a bit. “You know, the first episode is always about finding your right sur for every actor. It takes some time for everyone to find their sur and be on the same page.” Has he found his? “You mean to say I was not in my sur. Ek sur neeche karun kya? Mere hisaab se mera sur barabar tha. I feel you should wait for some more episodes. Making up your mind after watching just half an hour of it would be like judging a book by its jacket. It won’t be fair.”

In his very first appearance in the serial, he raises his two hands and gently waves at the thronging crowds, a la Amitabh Bachchan in Sarkar. Mention it to him and he simply smiles. Also, we get the impression that though he comes across as a gentle father and a concerned chacha, there is more to him than meets the eye. May be a negative streak waiting to come out in the right episode. He laughs and says, “Well, it could be that I am not what you see…I guess you will have to wait for that. I am not telling you anything right now.”

He plays a father to a married son. How did he come to terms with playing father to a grown up son? “There is no coming to terms with anything on TV. I have played a father before and put grey in my hair. The very first time when I played father on screen, I was just 26. So yes, no hassles there.”

Can we expect him to be around for a longer time on the small screen? “Yes, sure…though I just might disappear again for two years.”